More Than Meets the Eye
by Ashuri009
Summary: Whilst on gaurd duty for the Order Severus discovers that there is more to Mr.Potter than meets the eye. Can he see past old grudges and learn that perhaps Potter is less like his father than previously thought
1. Discovery

Severus Snape had always been a man of little patience, and the little patience he did have had dwindled down to a small wire thin thread. It did not help the fact that he had been assigned to watch the Potter brat for the Order. Shifting himself into a slightly more comfortable stance he watched the boy tending to a small garden on the immaculate front lawn. Sneering to himself he thought' it's good to see him doing some form of manual labor, as little as it is however.'

Brushing his hands on his trousers Harry stood from his stooped position and winced as his back gave a painful throb, Uncle Vernon had been in a particularly foul mood the night before due to the fact supper had not been finished upon his arrival home from work, and had in a fit of rage used his belt on the young wizard. This treatment however was one Harry had become accustomed to during the holiday.

Sighing to himself Harry wiped his hand across his forehead, pausing momentarily to rub his scar that had been twinging painfully for some time now. Taking notice of the suns position in the sky he made his way over to the water spigot and turned it on, taking care as he unraveled the hose as to leave it in the driveway, knowing full well that Vernon would be out for blood if he damaged the lawn in any way.

Raising an eyebrow the potions master noted the state of the clothing the boy was wearing, several sizes too large and rather worn, he also noted with some displeasure that the boy was also several pounds lighter than he had been at the end of the term. 'So he thinks himself too good for the food the muggles have provided him, how like his father the boy is' he thought with disdain.

As he was watering the lawn he didn't notice the sound of his cousins footsteps approaching him and was only made aware of his presence as his fist collided with the side of his head. " Hey freak mum says to hurry up and finish with the lawn." Blinking up from his new position on the lawn Harry blinked several times and repositioned his glasses on his nose and stood up. Seemingly ignoring the blow he had taken to the head.

An eyebrow shot upwards and the potions master was further surprised to see that Potter did not attack his cousin.' Odd one would think the boy would have some sort of reaction to being attacked. He mused only to be snapped out of his thoughts as a car came sputtering up the driveway and coming to a screeching halt.

Harry's complexion dropped several shades as his uncle stormed out of the car and barreled towards him, face a nasty shade of purple and moustache twitching "Boy this is your doing!" He bellowed as he picked him up by the scruff of his shirt and drug him inside his rage only intensifying as water splashed down the front of his shirt. Harry stumbled several times as he was drug through the front door which was loudly slammed behind them.

A sinking feeling filled Severus's stomach as he felt the wards shifting, whilst they did protect the boy from an attack by outside forces, they did little to repeal an attack from within the house, especially an attack coming from one of the guardians of the ward. If the wards were to completely fall however, it would leave the boy open to further attacks.

Harry gasped as he felt his uncles fingers sink into the tender flesh of his thorat, and instantly panic registered in his mind as the man gave a tight squeeze effectively cutting off his air supply." This is your fault boy, first that catastrophe at work and now the car malfunctioning?! What kind of freakishness have you been up to! Damnit answer me!" he bellowed shaking him with enough force to case his glasses to fly off.

Gasping Harry managed to squeak out "I haven't done anything it's not my fault." A growl passed from Vernon's lips as he drug the boy into the kitchen and over to the stove where a kettle of water set boiling away. "I'll ask you one more time Potter. What sort of voodoo have you used on me, you better pray that I'm satisfied with your answer boy!"

A loud scream caused Severus to quickly pull his wand from within the confines of his robe and rush to the door of the small house. A quick alohamora gave him instant access and upon entering the kitchen he was instantly thrown back by a burst of unrestrained magic, the muggle occupant in the room was thrown several feet back from the boy who was clutching his injured hand to his chest. Severus blanched as he spotted the kettle and steaming water on the floor, surely the muggle hadn't injured the boy in such a way.

A terrified squeak alerted him to the presence of Petunia, whirling on the woman he growled at her as she moved towards the fat male. "How dare you, you were entrusted with the safety and security of this boy. Yet you allow him to be injured under your own roof." Petunia grew several shades of white and wisely scurried out of the room. Nodding in satisfaction he turned to the boy.

" Potter allow me to look at your hand." Scowling when the boy did not comply he pulled him away from the kitchen and accio'ed his possessions before whisking him out the door and down the street and with a crack Apparated the two of them away.

The landing was less than pleasant, but luckily was enough to cause the boy to snap out of his daze and let out a pained whimper as he was pulled into the kitchen of Grimauld place where his hand was quickly thrust beneath icy water which elicited a hiss from the boy who tried to jerk his hand away.

"Calm yourself Potter, whilst this is painful I assure you it is necessary." Blinking once Harry began to take in his surroundings and calmed almost instantly. That was until he heard the horrified gasp from . "Good heavens Severus what happened?" she demanded as she wrapped Harry's hand in a damp washcloth. "I can only suspect that the boy's uncle attacked him, as there was an empty kettle on the ground upon my arrival."

"It's noting new" mumbled Harry as he downed the two potions that had been placed upon the table with a grimace." Your relatives attack you often; did you not think of telling anyone?" asked as she watched Severus set to work on healing the mangled hand with several softly spoken healing incantations.

A shrug was his response and he mumbled "It's not like it'd do any good, the headmaster says I have to return every summer for the protection of the blood wards." This was much to the surprise of the two adults in the room. " Mr. Potter whilst I assure you those bloody wards protect you from an outside attack, they will do little good to you now, as a matter of speaking I myself am surprised that they haven't fallen already."

"But the headmaster said as long as I live there that I would be safe" Severus snorted "As I said once before, from an outside attack. Those wards were wards were erected to keep you safe yes, but they are doing little good if the muggles have been treating you like this often, and if they have Mr. Potter this is abuse."

At the word abuse Harry shifted and mumbled "I haven't been abused, I'm just a freak.." at these words Severus hands slammed to the table and his voice took on a tone none in the room had ever heard from him.

"You think it normal for your family to attack you, surely even you are smarter than that for your family to attack you, surely even you are smarter than that ." when he received no response he spoke once more "Furthermore, whilst I will not pressure you into speaking just yet, but you will have to speak to someone about your families actions towards you. A mute nod was all he got.

"I trust you have it from here Molly?" He questioned the Weasley matriarch.

"Of course Severus dear¸ you hurry along, I know Dumbledore keeps you busy." She responded as she placed a steaming bowl in front of Harry who mumbled a quiet "Thank you Mrs. Weasley" and began eating what had placed before him.

Nodding once she sat down before the teen and gave his free hand a light squeeze " You know that if you need anything. anything at all dear all you need do is ask." A faint smile came to Harry's lips and he nodded to the older woman " Yes , Which room will I be staying in this time?"

Smiling the woman took his empty dishes and shooed him from the dining room " Same one as last time dear, though do be careful you still look a tad ill"

"I will be " he responded as he made his way up the stairs and into the room only to be tackled and have a face-full of bushy brown hair obscure his vision.


	2. Friends

Forgot to do this last chapter, this will be a multichapter story, it will have mentions of child abuse and will be rated a M for mature For the sake of this story Sirius didn't die in the Department of Mysteries.

I don't own Harry Potter, it belongs to J.K.R

Upon entering the room Harry was instantly surprised by a face full of bushy brown hair and a bone crushing hug that took his breath away.

"Let the man breath Hermione." Came a humored voice that held a gleeful edge to it.

Pulling back with a slight blush Hermione gave Ron a baleful look before turning back to Harry.

"Fred and George said they saw Professor Snape bring you in earlier, I thought you said you wouldn't be able to come until next month at the latest, has something happened" she asked with a concerned edge to her voice

Weighing his options of telling his friends the truth he decided against it and just shook his head. " No nothing's happened he just showed up at the Dursley's and told me to pack my trunk, after that he just apparated us here, didn't tell me anything though." He lied smoothly, avoiding eye contact.

Ron raised an eyebrow, something about Harry seemed subdued but rather than question the matter he decided to let it go. "Well anyway mate you're here now"

Hermione however wasn't as convinced " Harry really why did Professor Snape take you away from the Dursley's I mean unless Professor Dumbledore told him to there really wouldn't be a reason would there, with the blood wards in place and all I mean" she explained as she took a seat back on the bed.

Sighing slightly Harry turned back to his friend "Hermione I really don't want to talk about it alright?"

Curiosity unsatisfied Hermione decided to drop the subject for the time being, she really was worried about her friend, but he honestly seemed rather depressed. Changing the subject she decided to turn her attention to school.

"Have the two of you finished your homework yet?" she questioned earning a groan from Ron and a small chuckle from Harry

"Honestly Ronald, you always leave it for the last minute last year you waited until we were on the train for Merlin's sake."

"I told you that Charlie was visiting, things got swept under the rug, I tried to do it really I did." He defended himself as his ears turned pink.

"Harry you finished it already, let me see it then." She demanded in a crisp tone

"It's down stairs in my trunk I'll go get it in a bit alright Hermione? Right now I'd really like to rest" He admitted as he laid down on one of the beds.

Raising an eyebrow Hermione placed her hand on Harry's forehead to check for a fever, suuprised when she didn't find one.

"You're sure you're alright Harry?" she questioned some concern leaking into her voice.

"I'm fine, honest apparating just took a lot out of me is all" he said opening his eyes slightly and giving her a weak smile.

"If you're sure then" she mumbled still not convinced as she grabbed Ron by the arm and led him from the room and shutting of the lights. "Come on let's let him rest a bit Ron"

Laying on the lumpy old mattress Harry allowed himself to close his eyes and let his mind wander. What had Snape been doing on Privite Drive, and why had he saved him from Vernon's wrath? Sighing once he turned on his side and allowed his thoughts to shift to last fall and the Prophecy.

How was he supposed to defeat Voldemort, and how was he supposed to do it by himself. A frustrated sigh escaped his lips and he covered his face with his hands, it was all so frustrating and overwhelming, he was sixteen for Merlin's sake, and he still had the entire fate of the wizarding world on his hands.

Punching the pillow he sat up and grabbed his glasses deciding that he wouldn't be able to sleep after all.

Stepping into the hallway he heard Ron and Hermione's voices coming from the kitchen, shaking his head once he walked down the hall and stopped in front of his Godfathers bedroom door. If it hadn't been forSirius and the other members of the order he might not be alive, sighing once he braced himself for the talk to come and knocked on the door.


	3. Discussion

I must say this is a record for me, three updates in less than a week… anyhow the muse bug has bitten me, I expect to have this story go on for quiet sometime perhaps 10-15 chapters.

A loud knock at the door was quick to pull Sirius from his thoughts, cocking an eyebrow he stood and strode to the door hardly anyone ever came to his room and with good reasoning, after the entire department of mysteries scandal he had become less than polite towards over half the order, this excluded Arthur and Molly of course. Opening the door however caused his entire demeanor to change almost instantly.

"Harry" he barked as he happily pulled his godson into a fierce hug, a huge smile plastering itself to his face.

Harry shifted slightly but returned the hug just as fiercely, truth being told he had been worried sick about this man." Hullo Sirius" he mumbled burying his face into the older man's chest with a slight sigh.

Catching the sigh Sirius took a step backwards and looked at his godson with raised eyebrows "That bad of a summer then?" He questioned as he pulled Harry into his room.

"Nothing worse than normal" he mumbled running a hand through his hair.

"Damned muggles." Sirius seethed as his hand tightened into a fist at his side. "Trust me Harry things will be looking up soon, even Dumbledore said something about having new evidence that will prove my innocence and if you would testify on my behalf we'd be sure to win." He exclaimed excitedly.

Harry blinked several times. There had been talk of a new trial and he was just being informed. "How long has this been going on, the talking about a trial I mean?" he questioned softly, trying to keep his anger in check.

"Only about a week now Harry, don't worry we're not keeping you out of the loop this time not after.." the man trailed off midsentence and sighed "Look Harry, there are things that have been discussed, things about keeping you from gaining more information, I disagree with them wholeheartedly, but you must understand, other members of the order have more pull than I do." The man explained in a halfhearted attempt to appease the younger wizard.

Harry was momentarily blindsided by the anger he felt at the mentioning of what had occurred only a few months prior to this discussion, he also felt hurt that Sirius would be the one to bring it up.

"How many times do I have to explain that if Kreacher hadn't said you were gone I wouldn't have gone to the Ministry? If it's anyone's fault it's his!" Harry exclaimed trying to escape the blame from something he knew full well was not his fault, nor the house elf's, but Voldemort's.

Sirius sighed before giving Harrys shoulder a squeeze, he understood that Harry must be feeling left but knew that there was little he could do to pacify the boy. "Harry, you must understand, the Order meetings often have dangerous information in them pertaining not to Voldemort's location, but as to those of his followers."

Harry scowled slightly but took a calming breath before he spoke. " But it's the principle of the matter, no one tells me anything anymore, if anyone of us has a right to be there it's me I'm the one who has to defeat this man."

Sirius sighed and shook his head, Harry just didn't seem to understand that they were trying to protect him, Placing both hands on Harry's shoulders Sirius looked him in the eye. "Harry for once, let the adults handle things, you should be more worried about being a teenager than facing down Voldemort, when that day comes it comes, but for now, do try and enjoy the rest of your holiday, if not for yourself, than for me and your friends."

A small smile mad its way to Harry's lips and he nodded once before hugging Sirius once more. Truth being told he had been more worried about Sirius this summer than any of the one's prior to last year. With good reasoning too he might have added.

Sirius noticed that his godson still looked slightly depressed so in a moments impulse he pulled Harry to the other side of the room and pushed him towards a well-used school trunk.

"Go on open it" he said with a wolfish grin upon his lips.

Blinking once, he released the clasps and couldn't help the gasp that escaped his lips as he discovered just who this trunk had belonged to.

"Did this really belong to my dad?" he questioned as he pulled a small worn book from the confines of the trunk. "The Tales of Beedle the Bard" he murmured running a finger along the spine of the book.

"I do believe that a few of the books in there belong to your mother… Your father gave me his trunk, told me to give it to you when the time seemed right.

A wide grin has plastered itself to Harry's lips and he pulled his godfather into a bone crushing hug. "Thank you Sirius, this is brilliant." The teen exclaimed as he returned to the trunk and sat down before it, marveling at some of the contents.

"You can take it up to your room if you'd like, it's just taking up space here, not that I mind of course."

Nodding Harry stood and hugged his godfather once more and then returning to the trunk closed the lid and clasped the clasp and returned to his room only to once more become lost within the contents of the trunk.

Several hours had passed by before Harry noticed the lighting in the room had gone dim with the setting sun. Stretching he stood up and gave a small grunt as his kneed popped. He had become lost in reading one of the books that had turned out to be a diary of sorts, at first it seemed odd to be reading his parent private thoughts, but soon he found himself laughing as he realized it was a dairy of the first year of his life.

Walking over to the door he began to open it only to be interrupted as it swung inwards revealing Hermione " Oh good you're up, did you sleep well?" she questioned.

Nodding once he walked out of the room and pulled the door closed behind him. " Didn't really get much sleep though, got caught up talking to Sirius.

Hermione clucked her tongue before she gave Harry a small push towards the stairs " Well go on down then, I've got to go get Ginny."

Shaking his head Harry gave a small laugh before descending the stairs. He loved Hermione really he did but at times she was so pushy that he forgot why. Upon entering the dining room Harry's ears were instantly assaulted by the loud din of the table above which, sparks were shooting from a spinning device that squealed loudly when any attempts when any attempts to remove it from the air.

" Hiya Harry." Quipped George as the younger wizard took a seat. "Like our newest toy, it's a screaming Frisbee" added Fred. "But, screaming and shooting sparks not all it does." suggested the twins together.

" I'm almost afraid to ask, but what else does it do?" questioned Harry.

Giving a devilish grin the twins pulled their wands from beneath their robes and pointed it at the screaming disk before chanting together "Draco Transformatio" at which the disk morphed and changed into a small dragon that breathed fire at the members of the table.

Scowling pulled her wand from her waist band and pointed it at the dragon before she forcefully cast a Finite on the fire breather that quickly reverted back into a small disk earning a dismayed groan from all the teens at the table.

Replacing her wand as if nothing had happened, the Weasley matriarch began spooning food on to the plates which quickly made their way down to each person, piled high with meat, potatoes and bread.

Tucking into the food Harry soon found himself lost into conversation with Remus over this year's quditch strategy.

"It's going to be brilliant you know, I bet even that Slytherin has a hard time keeping up with us."

Nodding once, Remus took a small sip of water before turning back to the conversation. "Of course they will Harry, after all you are your father's son"

At this a large grin found its way to Harry's lips before he turned on Ron "You are trying out this year right, I mean I'm almost positive you'll make the team."

Ron's ears turned pink as he swallowed his mouthful of food, not daring to be manner less in front of his mother.

"Almost positive, am I your best friend or not?"

Hermione gave Ron a reproachful look and smacked him on the arm.

" Honestly Ronald, you would think you'd learn by now. Just because you're Harry's friend doesn't mean you're going to be treated better than anyone else, and I'm almost positive that Harry wouldn't risk the captains position.. Would you?" she questioned as she eyed Harry.

Put on the spot Harry almost choked on his drink, coughing several times he wiped his mouth on the back of his hand and shook his hand "Of course not, Ron has to try out like everyone else."

Ron laughed and shook his head "I'm only joking, I know I have to try out."

Nodding in satisfaction Hermione returned to her conversation with Ginny leaving the two boys discussing quditch maneuvers and the prospect of once again winning the quditch cup.


	4. Breakdown

I must say I'm surprising even myself at the rate of which my ideas are coming to me, however I mustn't take all the credit myself, I've had a plethora of PM'S and E-mails from fans who are urging me to continue this piece of work, and I can't disappoint my fans now can I? Also I must urge you to PM me and let me know if you have an idea for this story, also feel free to PM me if you notice any grammatical and spelling along with punctuation errors. As always Thank You to everyone who has reviewed and expressed interest in this story! Also to anyone who is interested I do need a beta reader for this work.

It wasn't often that that Harry read outside of class, today however was different. The tome that sat before him had to be one of the most interesting things he had read in quiet a long while. It gave him a whole new connection with his parents as it had been written by the both of them, and it was written about the time they had had with him no less!

Turning the page Harry let out a happy laugh as a photo fell out of the book, in the picture James was standing happily behind a baby Harry who every bit as to have just woken up, his hair sticking up messily just like his fathers.

A sharp knock at the door pulled his attention away from the diary. Standing he made his way to the door and was unable to mask the surprise that must have been on his face as he was suddenly in the presence of a man who as far as he knew, hated the very ground he walked upon.

Severus Snape's eyebrows rose as he took in Potter, he was still in his night clothes for Merlin's sake and his hair, had the boy never heard of a hairbrush? Shaking his head once he chastised himself for insulting the boy, it wouldn't bode well and he was bound to get nowhere with the boy if he stirred his anger.

" , might I have a word with you?" the potions master inquired, doing his best to keep the animosity he felt towards the boy out of his voice.

Harry blinked several times before. " I suppose so, just let me get changed first and then we can go into the drawing room."

Nodding once the potions master turned on his heal and headed to the drawing room pausing at the entrance to look at the boy " Do try and hurry along I have other matters to attend to." He quipped.

A momentary angered expression was on the boy's face before it quickly morphed into something akin to nonchalant.

Disappearing into the room Harry turned to his trunk and quickly pulled on a pair of pants and a large baggy shirt, he hadn't had time to go shopping yet so all he had to wear were Dudley's old clothes.

A red eyebrow shot up as Ron took in his friends expression " You look like you've been sentenced to detention with the greasy git, what's gotten you so worked up?" he questioned as Harry pulled on a pair of ragged trainers.

"Funny you should mention snaps, because that's who was just at the door."

Ron blinked several times before laughing at the hilarity of what Harry had just said. "Honestly mate that's real funny, you almost had me convinced there for a minute."

Shaking his head once Harry headed for the door" I've got to go Ron I'll be back in a bit." as he shut the door behind him he could still hear Ron's laughter. Sighing slightly he headed for the drawing room, mind racing about what Snape could possibly want, pausing slightly outside the drawing room Harry took a deep breath and steeled himself for what was to come, knowing Snape, it could be anything.

Upon hearing the boy enter the room Severus turned from the window and was momentarily taken aback, the clothes Potter was wearing were in deplorable condition, they also appeared to be several sizes too large for him. Shaking his head once he wondered why the clothes looked as if they belonged to the boy's cousin, and that was when it clicked.

" those clothes, they belonged to your cousin didn't they?"

Harry was beyond shocked; aside from his friends no-one knew that he had to wear Dudleys han-me-downs during the summer. Deciding it was in his best interest he simply nodded.

Shaking his head once the potions master felt his anger boil slightly, the damned muggles hadn't even seen fit to buy the child clothes that fit him properly, they rather gave him castoff's that wouldn't have been fit for even a beggar

Pulling his wand from his sleeve he spoke to the boy." What I am about to do is a simple shrinking charm, whilst it will cause your clothes to fit temporarily it is best that it not be used more than three times, as it is detrimental to the integrity of the fabric, however little that integrity may be." Pointing his wand at the boy he waved it over the clothes whilst muttering a quiet "emarcesco."

Harry blinked in astonishment as for the first time in over a month he had clothing that actually fit him properly. "Thanks sir." he said with genuine gratitude in his voice.

Nodding once Severus inclined his head to the chairs that sat in the middle of the room." You may want to take a seat , what I am here to discuss with you is going to be less than pleasant."

Harry blinked but did as he was told, so far the potions master had been civil with him, and that was a far cry better than how the man normaly treated him.

Taking a seat across from the boy Severus made brief eye contact and was momentarily drawn in to the boy's thoughts where he saw the images of the boy's uncle holding his hand to the eye of the stove, before he was thrown out whilst being given the image of a rather large brick wall. Impressed with the boy's improvement he began" I see you have been practicing blocking attack, a very well made barrier" the potions master admitted.

A faint scowl had made its way to Harry's lips the man had tried to use Occlumency on him, he was angered, but that anger was quickly extinguished upon hearing the extremely rare praise from the elder wizard.

"Thank you sir" he mumbled.

Nodding Severus folded his hands in his lap. "Mr,Potter when we last spoke, I believed I told you that some pressing issues would be discussed. Noticing the boys expression he raised his hand quieting any arguments that may have been about to rise from him.

" , I assure you I am not here to place blame anyone, well anyone aside from your relative's for the actions that have befallen against you, Yes I've seen your memories, and something should have been done about this long ago."

"But Sir Professor Dumbledore says that I have to go back." Harry began, not wanting to discuss this with anyone let alone this man.

" I assure you had the Headmaster known you were being so gravely treated, he would have placed you elsewhere."

"But no-one else would want me, not with the risks associated I mean"

Shaking his head Severus almost sighed " I can assure you, there are a plethora of wizarding families that would be willing to take you, however even in the wizarding world it is true, that blood relations have the highest claim, even if those relatives are muggle."

He notice the boy deflate slightly at this " However, in extreme cases an orphaned child may be placed with a family of his or her choosing at age sixteen, which I do believe you are turning shortly."

Harry nodded at this, it was true he would be turning sixteen in just a few days, but he was still weary of choosing someone to stay with, what if Voldemort found out?!

"Now as I was saying at sixteen you can be placed with a family of your choosing, whilst I know your first choice would be your god father, I urge you to wait until after the trial, yes I know about that."

"Sir about the trial, what can you tell me?" Harry questioned almost afraid to ask as he feared he would gain no response.

"I will let you know that new testimony is about to be made, by none other than Wormtail, whom as of last week was in Azkaban prison."

"They actually caught that slimy rat bastard?" Harry let slip before he could catch it.

Raising an eyebrow Severus shook his head at the boy's choice of wording. "As fitting as that description is , I must ask you to watch your language." The elder wizard said with a slight tone of humor in his voice.

Harry gave a small chuckle then let out a sigh which was quickly followed by a small sob.

Blinking several times Severus felt the unfamiliar twinge of pity surface in his stomach, of course the boy would be emotional he thought, the man who had betrayed his parents had finally been caught. Shaking his head he put a hand on the boys shoulder, he would need support, and he would try his best to give it to him, if not to pacify himself, then to fulfill the promise he had made to Lily so many years ago.

Harry wiped his eyes on the back of his hand and looked up at the professor, embarrassed that he had broken down like that in front of the man. "Sorry sir, it's just, you know overwhelming that they fin aly caught him." the boy mumbled feebly.

Nodding once the potions master pulled a vial from his pocked and handed it over. "Drink that , and I dare say you just may feel a tad better."

Nodding in compliance Harry quickly swallowed the potion down and handed the vial back to the professor "Calming Draught?" he questioned only to get a nodded affirmative from the elder wizard.

"Yes Potter, I do understand it is overwhelming, your mother and I were friends of sorts in school, but that is a story for another day, today however we need to focus on the situation at hand with your relatives.


	5. Dark Item

I must say this chapter did not want to be written, however soon enough the plot bunny struck, and this is what came to me. The books mentioned in this chapter are actual books, some of them are based in the occult and others are based in the Wiccan religion. As always, a big Thank You to my reviewers.

I don't own Harry Potter

The following day had them cleaning out the drawing room. Several cabinets had already been cleaned out, yet several more remained. Currently however, was trying to banish a gaggle of Cornish pixies that had somehow made their way inside.

Flicking her wand she shook her head and cast an imobulis charm, causing the last of the pixies to freeze mid-air and hover. Sighing in relief the teens set about leaning once more. Within time Harry came across a strange looking locket that was engraved with a large silver ornate S that sat atop a large sparkling emerald. Interest mildly piqued he put the locket in his pocket so he could inspect it closer at a later time.

Amidst the trash they found, they also found treasures. Sirius was also in the room voicing his displeasure about some of the items that were being found; currently he was holding a jar of pickled eyeballs with a mildly disgusted look on his face.

"You know I never understood why my family is so obsessed with the dark arts, don't get me wrong they are fascinating, but this" he motioned with his head to the jar. "is just disgusting."

Nodding once in agreement Harry took the jar and passed it off to Hermione, who held it in front of her and regarded it as if it may explode.

Shaking his head Sirius moved one to a small pile of books, many of which had a thick coating of dust on them, one book ion particular had captured Hermione's attention and an excited squawk escaped her lips as she read the title. "The Magus; by John Fowels! Oh Sirius please you simply must let me read this!" she exclaimed eyes shining brightly as she held the thick leather bound tome to her chest.

Shaking his head the man gave a barking laugh and nodded to the teen. "Help yourself to anything in the room, so long as it's not Black family artifacts as much as I hate having them around, for my cousins could lay claim to them if they wished to ." He mumbled as he picked up a small vial of a thick congealed crimson liquid "Yuck, if this is what I think it is, my family has some serious mental issues." He muttered as he tossed the vial into the rubbish bin.

Harry glanced up at his godfather; the man had become increasingly short tempered in the days that were leading up to the trial. Though, Harry supposed that the anger wasn't being directed directly at those whom he had been snapping at, but rather at the situation in its entirety. The man had been cooped up in his house for over two years now, and any chance at freedom was sure to set the man on edge.

Returning to the task at hand Harry noticed that the room had grown slightly cleaner and several more cabinets had been cleared out, sitting in one of them however was a photo he had never seen before.

Staring back up at him was his parents on their wedding day.

His father had a mischievous smile plastered to his face and his arms wrapped tightly around his mother who wore a stunning gown, her hair in a intricate braid as she smiled at the camera, standing behind them were Sirius and Remus the two of them all smiles as they gazed on their best friends happiness. Smiling Harry tried to pass the photo to his god father but the man shook his head "No, you keep it, I have another copy in my album."

Harry perked up at this; maybe he could convince his godfather to tell him more about his parents.

Shaking his head he placed the photo on the table and herd another excited squeal come from Hermione who had come across another large book, this one however being over the major Sabbats in their world. "Oh this is just excellent, it goes into more detail than The Book of Shadows!" she exclaimed happily as she sat the book down on the large pile that she already had growing.

"Keep it Hermione" Sirius sad happily as he sat down in one of the large wing backed chairs "I haven't gotten any use for all these books anyhow.

Hermione looked as Sirius in an aghast manner "There's ALWAYS a use for books, if not for research than for pleasure reading" she chided the older wizard.

Sirius gave a wolfish grin "Or for kindling during the winter." He shot back at the Gryffindor.

Hermione paled several shades and pulled the book she was currently to her chest, giving Sirius a horrified look. "Burning books?!" she squeaked in dismay "You've actually burnt a book?" she inquired "That's totally barbaric!" she finished tears of dismay pooling in her eyes.

Laughing at the teens reaction Sirius shook his head. "I was kidding Hermione." He intoned to the distraught youth, who promptly threw a pillow at the man, who caught it and chuckled as he placed it behind his head. "Thanks for the pillow." he teased.

Hermione huffed at the man's playful barb but soon shook her head and smiled at him,

Harry gave a soft laugh as he watched the interaction between the two. Sirius was acting more himself as the room grew cleaner. For some reason it seemed the more items were disposed of, the happier the man grew.

Turning back to the cabinet he was cleaning Harry pulled a book from the shelf and blinked at the title "Dark artifacts and their uses.. seems interesting." He mused as he sat it atop the table next to him.

The sensation of having his pocket rifled through caught his attention and his hand automatically shot downwards only to close tightly around a thin bony wrist.

"Kreacher what do you think you are doing?" bellowed Sirius as he snatched up the elf.

"Master Regulus trusted Kreacher to destroy dark artifact, Master Regulus said very important Kreacher succeed." The elf sobbed as he clutched the ornate locket to his chest.

Blinking Harry looked at his godfather and motioned to the man to set the elf down, once his request he crouched down and looked into the house elfs eyes.

"Why did he want you to destroy it Kreacher, what exactly is it."

Master Potter knows not what he was holding, Master Potter would have put himself in grave danger if he kept the locket."

"But why Kreacher?" questioned Harry.

"Tis something tainted by the Dark Lord's magic, tis a most evil item the Dark Lord uses to prolong his life."

Harry raised an eyebrow, if it was something that Voldemort had created; it was bound to be dangerous.

"What is it though?" he questioned.

"Master Regulus called it a horcrux, he said the Dark Lord uses it to store parts of himself within." The elf sobbed.

At the word horcrux Hermione gave a terrified gasp and put her hand to her mouth.

Blinking Harry turned to his friend and tilted his head.

"What is a horcrux Hermione, I can tell from your reaction that it's something bad."

Shaking her head to clear it the young witch began speaking. "A horcrux is a container for a fragment of a soul, it's a horrible, evil, thing Harry, it can only be created by splitting ones soul by the most horrible, evil act known to man! You have to murder someone to make a horcrux"

Harry gasped in revulsion as he looked at the locket, and he thought it had been pretty.

"You mean that thing has a piece of Voldemort's soul in it?" he roared in revulsion.

"Yes, it appears so, oh this is bad Harry if that is a horcrux it means we're in big trouble."

"I hate to ask but why?" questioned Ron as he looked at the locket the elf had handed him.

"Put that down!" she shrieked causing Ron to throw the locket to the floor where it clattered noisily.

"Bloody hell Hermione no need to give me a heart attack." The read head muttered as he stepped away from the locket.

Suddenly the door to the drawing room burst open and the headmaster strode in with his wand drawn, as he entered he summoned the horcrux with a softly spoken accio."

Turning to the teens he gave them a concerned look before he shook his head and spoke to them softly. "I have it from here young ones. You no longer need to trouble yourself with this?" before he turned and exited the room leaving behind him three stunned teens.

"How the bloody hell dose that man always know when something's going on?" questioned Ron as he stared at the doors that had been shut with a slam.

"More importantly why did he seem so, well angry, it's not as if we'd done anything wrong added Harry.

Hermione shook her head at her two friends as she took a seat in one of the large winged back chairs with a slight sigh. "Don't the two of you understand, if You-Know-Who created one of those things, he's bound to have created more."

Harry blinked several times before asking "Hermione what, is a horcrux exactly?" he questioned as he took the seat next to hers.

"A horcrux, like I said is something used to hold a piece of their creators soul with in it, but you have to kill someone to make one, usually it's an inanimate object like a piece of jewelry, or a book, something along those lines, anyhow it's used to make the creator invulnerable to attack¸ they even say that so long as one is made there's always a chance their creator can be brought back to life."

Sudden realization set in for Harry as Hermione explained what one was.

"That's how he did it the, that's how he came back, he made horcruxes."

"You mean there are bloody bits of that bastard's soul floating about?" asked Ron, his expression a mixture of morbid curiosity and horror.

"It appears so, now the next question is, how many did he make, usually a wizard or sometimes in rare cases witch would make two or three?" she began.

"Buy Voldemort is far from normal." Finished Harry.

Sighing Hermione looked at her two friends before she remembered something Harry had told her long ago.

Harry didn't you say when you destroyed the diary down in the chamber, that Riddle tried to stop you.

"You're right I did.. he also said he could have used the diary to come back then and there."

"Well that's two so far, Harry You must talk to Dumbledore and see what he knows." She said looking to him.

"As if he'll tell me anything." He muttered.

"You never know unless you try." She said softly.


	6. Occlumancy

I would like to let my readers know I haven't abandoned this. I had lost internet for a few weeks and had a bad case of writers block, with out further ado here is the chapter

Severus was beyond irritated, not only had he been asked by the headmaster to remain after the meeting, he had also been asked to speak to Potter about resuming Occlumancy lessons within the start of the next term. Rubbing the bridge of his nose he took his seat at the table and offered a quiet thank you to Molly, who had placed a plate of roasted lamb before him.

Shaking his head once the Potions master began to eat in silence as he observed the teen who sat next to his god father chattering away about something Severus couldn't hear. His gaze shifted over to Lupin who seemed to be discussing something with Molly who gave a hearty laugh and nodded as she placed the plate in front of the werewolf. Next were the twins who had their wands pointed at their latest product, and interesting puff like creature that changed colors depending on their owners mood.

Severus observed each person at the table with cool indifference, but underneath he had the faintest desire to be included, but that desire quickly vanished as his gaze came to rest once more upon Harry.

Feeling the sensation of someone's eyes upon him Harry looked up and was surprised to find the cold black eyes of Snape upon him, normally he would have looked away, but something about the way the man was looking at him caused him to keep eye contact for a few moments.

Unexpectedly Severus felt himself drawn into the teens mind.

_Vernon Dursley stood above his bleeding and trembling nephew with a belt in hand._

"_How dare you boy, How dare you attack Dudley!" the walrus of a man bellowed as he kicked Harry in the ribs, a resounding crack echoing through the room._

_A grunt passed Harry's lips as he rolled away from the foot and a pained look flashed momentarily on the boys features._

_As his uncle advanced upon him a high pitched scream passed the young child's lips and suddenly the boy was bodily thrown into a small broom closet beneath the stairs._

A wall was suddenly obscuring his vision and Severus blinked at the force of which he had been thrown out of the boy's mind, however what he had just seen was at the forefront.

Glancing once more at the boy he shook his head before speaking.

"Potter, after supper I need to speak to you after the meal concluded, _privately_." He intoned seeing the look on Black's face.

Scowling Harry nodded once before he turned back to Sirius and resumed his conversation.

As dinner drew to a close and the children left the room Severus noticed the hesitation in Potter's voice as he told his friends he would catch up with them later.

"Well if you're sure Harry" Intoned Hermione as she drug a protesting Ron up the stairs.

After the room had cleared out Severus turned back to Harry and glanced at the sullen teen from across the table

" , the headmaster has asked me to resume teaching you Occlumancy, whilst I assure you, you have made some improvement, it's not quite satisfactory enough for the headmasters tastes.

Harry blinked several times, coming from Snape that was as close to a compliment as he was going to receive." But sir, I thought you said you were through." The boy began.

"The headmaster can be very persuasive, I assure you I am doing this begrudgingly."

"When do we start?" questioned Harry.

"The headmaster feels it necessary that we begin with in the week, as I am sure you are busy studying for the coming term and my duties keep me otherwise indisposed, I am open to Tuesdays or Thursdays whichever is to your preference."

Harry blinked twice before he quickly responded with "Thursdays are fine with me sir."

Nodding in satisfaction Severus regarded the teen for a moment and then noticed the dark bags beneath his eyes.

"Potter have you not been sleeping well" the elder wizard questioned, slight displeasure evident in his tone.

Harry's cheeks flooded with color as he responded. "I've been sleeping alright; I still have nightmares on occasion though, although there getting less and less frequent."

Nodding the potions master pulled a dark purple potion from the confines of his robe and handed it to the teen.

"Drink one teaspoon full every other night, this is a dreamless sleep potion and I dare say after you've had a few decent nights rest you will be feeling more like yourself."

Harry blinked but took the potion with a quiet. "Thank you sir." Before he tucked it away into the pocket of his jeans.

Nodding then pulled a small worn book from the confines of his robes and passed it to the surprised teen. "Read chapters one through three before next Thursday, this will further your chances at success during our next lesson." The potions master said as he strode from the room leaving a bewildered teen behind.

As Harry made his way up to his room he was aware of two things, the first being that Snape hadn't said anything about what he had witnessed in the teens mind, and second being that the man had been almost kind.

Chuckling at the thought of a kind Snape Harry entered the room he shared with Ron only to be bombarded with questions.

"What did the great greasy git want to torture you with this time?"

Turning to his friend Harry sighed as he took a seat on his bed and sighed " Dumbledore wants me to try learning Occlumancy again."

Hermione looked pleased at this.

"Again, last time was a disaster though." Intoned the red-head as he took a seat across from Harry.

Frowning Harry ran his hand through his hair and nodded in agreement.

Hermione who had been silent spoke suddenly.

"But the headmaster's right Harry, you really do need to learn it, to be able to keep Voldemort out of your head, which would be in your best interest."

Harry nearly snorted but was able to refrain from doing so.

Ron looked at Hermione as if she had grown two heads. "But Hermione Snape's just as likely to turn Harry over to Voldemort as Malfoy is, to be able to get in Harry's head once a week, who knows what that slime ball would reveal.

With a heavy sigh Hermione shook her head " He works for the Order Ronald, besides if he were going to turn Harry over, he would have done so a long time ago."

"I still don't trust him" Ron muttered as he threw himself back onto the pillows with a grunt.

Harry shook his head at the two and let out a soft laugh." It's not like it could be any worse than last time is it"


	7. Gaurdianship

In Dumbledore's office Snape was beyond enraged.

"They beat the boy, Albus beat him and kept him in a bloody closet!" he thundered his normal impassive features contorted with rage.

"Surely young Harry would have said something if this were the case Severus."

Scowling the Potions master whirled on the elder wizard and spoke in little more than a hiss. "Potter is not known for speaking when it is in his best interest, and on another note abused children rarely speak about the abuse."

"While I do not doubt what you saw Severus, perhaps this was a single occurrence." began Dumbledore.

"And what of the attack his uncle inflicted upon him earlier this summer?" He demanded.

At this Dumbledore sighed and shook his head. "As to that manner I have no idea, but as it stands Harry must return to his relatives at the start of summer holidays."

"The hell the boy dose, I made a vow, a vow to protect that boy and by Merlin I will do whatever it takes to fulfill it!"

At this statement the maddening twinkle returned to Dumbledore's eyes.

"Anything, Severus?" intoned the headmaster.

"I'd as soon let the boy live with myself than allow him to return to his relatives."

"Then it is settled, Harry shall remain with you during his holidays that is, if you have no objections."

Realizing he had been conned Severus was quick to check his tongue before he spoke again.

"I do hope you know what you are getting the boy in to Albus, I will not mollycoddle him, Nor will I treat him any differently than any other student."

"Nor would I expect you to Severus." The elder wizard responded as he folded his hands upon his desk.

"Potter is not likely to take well to the news, you do realize this?" questioned Snape.

"Harry will understand that it is for his protection, any objections he may have will be short lived." Responded Dumbledore.

"I do hope that this scheme of yours works, if the Dark Lord were to find out that the boy had been placed in my custody, you realize that my position would be compromised." Intoned the potions master.

"If and only if that occurs, we will cross that bridge when we come to it, I do believe and have trust in your ability on keeping Voldemort from breaking your mental barriers."

"It is not that, that worries me Albus."

A white eyebrow rose at this and the elder of the two cocked his head to the side. " Then what is it that dose my boy?" he questioned.

" The Dark Lord's ability to break in to Potter's mind."

"Ah, and there is the reason we are going to resume teaching young Harry Occlumancy."

At Severus scowled. " I have already spoken to the boy about it, and he has conceded that it would be to his benefit."

"Wonderful work Severus." Intoned the headmaster.

Nodding his head the potions master exhaled through his nose.

"What is it that troubles you Severus?" came the unexpected question.

"My temper with Potter, we often do not see eye to eye."

"I do believe I have told you that Harry has an incredible capacity to love and to forgive."

At this Severus snorted "The likelihood of Potter forgiving me is as likely as he is to forgive the Dark Lord."

Bemused by this statement Albus shook his head. "He may very well forgive you Severus, but I will admit, that will take time to transpire."

A curt nod was his only answer.

"Now then" began Albus " I have discovered the possible location of another Horcrux."

At this admittance, a noticeably strained look came to Snape's face as he turned to face the headmaster. "Where is it?" came the soft question.

"In the home where Tom's parents resided" responded Dumbledore.

"When is it you attend to go after it, I shall need time to restock my potions should the need for any arise."

"It would be best, if I were to go after it before the start of term."

"So soon?" questioned Severus "Surely you would need more time than just a month Albus."

"Alas Severus, time is something we have little of I'm afraid, as Voldemort gathers more support the chances of him hiding the Horcruxes behind more powerful illusions grow stronger."

At this the potions master sighed and took a seat in the chair across from the headmaster. " How many do you believe there to be Albus?" he questioned softly his black eyes meeting Dumbledore's blue one.

"I do not know Severus but the chances of it being a number with magical properties is highly likely."

"But that would mean it is between seven and thirteen." Summarized Snape.

The headmaster nodded in an affirmative as he looked at Severus.

Do you plan on telling the boy of this Albus, it would be beneficial for him to know I believe."

"I very well may include Harry in the search for them Severus."

"Do you think that wise, allowing him in such close proximity could have an adverse effect on him"

"I do not believe that the Horcrux contains enough of Voldemort's soul to harm Harry."

Severus nodded at this before he rubbed the bridge of his nose. "I best be taking my leave Albus, I do need to begin brewing and it would also give me time to prepare for the reaction I am to receive from the news I have to deliver to Potter."

Dumbledore nodded as he watched the man stand and begin to leave his office. "Oh and Severus my boy, Do take care of yourself, I do worry for you Dumbledore nodded as he watched the man stand and begin to leave his office. "Oh and Severus my boy, Do take care of yourself, I do worry for you after all."

Severus nodded at this before opening the door and descending the large spiral staircase that led to Dumbledore's office.

Shaking his head once, Dumbledore looked to Fawkes and spoke in a subdued tone. "I do believe that, that was one of the most difficult conversations I have had in quite sometime my old friend."

A high trill from the Phoenix sounded and a small smile came to Dumbledore's lips.

As Severus was making his way to his quarters he allowed himself to become lost in his thoughts. The headmaster must be up to something, why else would he want him to watch over the Potter boy. Sighing in frustration he continued to make his way down the many stair cases that led to the dungeons, blatantly ignoring the call from Filch that he was dirtying the flagstones that had just been polished. A glare in the Squib's direction was enough to silence the man.

As he reached his quarters his eyes traveled over the furnishings. Many would have expected them to be filled with dark colors, but contrary to what they thought it was painted in a pale cream color and contained rich mahogany woodwork.

Sighing he walked over to the rarely accessed liquor cabinet and pulled out a tumbler and poured himself a generous helping of deep red wine.

Taking a sip he sat down in his favorite armchair and stared deeply into the flames crackling away in the fireplace.

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